THE ADVENT EQUATION

Last year I reviewed the second studio album from Mexico's The Advent Equation, Remnants of Oblivion. After finding much to like on that album, I explored more of what had come before. What I found is that The Advent Equation were originally known as Advent, and were very obviously influenced by Opeth (with the name of the band presumably coming from the Opeth song of the same name). The Opeth influence is so marked that I suspect Advent may have been described as derivative. The first Advent Equation album, Limitless Life Reflections, definitely sees the band finding more of its own sound, even if the Opeth influence is still clearly heard. I do actually very much like this debut album, but Remnants of Oblivion blows it out of the water, with the band very much out of the shadows of their influence. The band were keen to release a live album, despite the restrictions of a post-covid world, hence this impressive performance captured live at Psicofonia Studio.

Remnants of Oblivion is performed almost in its entirety as part of this live release. Interestingly, the one song that is not part of this performance is Balance Through Extinction. In my review of Remnants of Oblivion I gave the song "the wooden spoon [as] (while still a good song), [it] doesn't really seem necessary to me. It doesn't add a lot, if anything, to the overall concept of the album, and as much as I don't like to skip songs, I often consider doing so with Balance. That I've not skipped it so far in all my many listenings of the album says a lot for the song, but I do wonder if the album might flow more fluidly without it." Needless to say, I think this live album does flow more fluidly without it. Apart from this omission, the songs of Remnants of Oblivion are performed in the same sequence they appear on the album, interspersed with an occasional track from the previous album.

Thus, the album begins with the same incendiary instrumental introduction of Ignition, and the powerful Patterns of Spiralling Reality, the deserved lead single from Remnants of Oblivion. From the opening notes of Ignition, there's a palpable sense that this performance is more vital, more alive, than the album version. Given the level of performance, it's impressive how much more energy and emotion seem to come forward live. The experience of playing this material live, even if not to an audience, sounds like the band proudly celebrating the culmination of all that went into the creation process. Credit must go to the production as well as the performers, for how rich and full the sound is. For me, this album is superior in every way to the studio album, and I'm honestly not sure how often I'll ever listen to that again, now I have this.

There's a heavier turn with the Remnants of Oblivion title track, the first time harsh vocals are heard on that album. Suitably, the first track taken from the harsher and heavier debut album, Limitless Life Reflections, follows, and it really works. I made the comment in my review for Remnants that some fans of extreme metal might find the relative lack of harsh vocals on that album a disappointment, so the inclusion of songs such as Afterlife Evolutionary will definitely make those fans happy. This song is more and more enjoyable as it progresses, although I still find it just out of my comfort zone to begin with, the final passages are just amazing. It beautifully leads into Facing the Absolute. By the time An Eternal Moment begins, I am well in need of the respite that the slow burning opening of this song provides. An Eternal Moment requires the same persistence as Afterlife Evolutionary, beginning in a manner that doesn't necessarily do a lot for me, but rewarding patience with a fantastic payoff. From approximately the half way point, this song becomes a bit of a monster. Never as heavy as any of the surrounding songs, but still far heavier than its beginning belies.

Next is another track from the debut, Purification Lapse. It works so much better than Balance Through Extinction. I love this song, which (for me) has more character and depth than Afterlife Evolutionary. It's probably my favourite song from the debut, so it's great to hear it here, and it definitely provides far greater flow to the album, as well as augmenting the songs either side. Before I listened to this live release, I was disappointed to see that the first part of The Creation hadn't been extended, as I felt it was too short on Remnants of Oblivion. It turns out that my listening experience was just negatively affected by Balance Through Extinction, because Hypnos's length, when sandwiched between Purification Lapse and Thanatos, is perfect!

However, perfect is also how I found Thanatos for ending Remnants of Oblivion. So, again, before listening to this live album, I was wary about the band's decision to play one more track, another from the debut, A Violent Motion. Again, I needn't have worried, as the violence of A Violent Motion serves as a terrific encore. While there are obvious differences in sound and style between the two albums that the songs are taken from, I have to admit they gel far more than I expected. I definitely prefer the more original sound of the Remnants of Oblivion to material from Limitless Life Reflections, but the added heaviness and depth they bring to the set is welcome. If I were to recommend just one The Advent Equation, it would be this one! I'm left wondering where the band will take their sound next.

Remnants of Oblivion is the sophomore album from Mexican band, The Advent Equation, and comes eight years after their debut. It's a cracking concept album, with some wonderful tunes and outstanding vocals. I would guess that most people might make comparisons to Opeth, TesseracT, Gojira or Nevermore - to name just four groups of dissimilar enough sound to let you know that this band is not derivative of any other.

The album begins suitably with Ignition, which does what it says on the label, and ignites. It effectively works as a lengthy instrumental introduction to Patterns of Spiralling Reality, where we first hear the clean vocals of Margil Vallejo. I love the tone and timbre of his voice. "Spirality" - the condition of being spiral - and "reality" are almost interchangeable terms, according to Geoff Ward in his book Spirals: The Pattern of Existence. Maynard Keenan expressed similar in the song Lateralus. The idea is that consciousness, and not matter, is the ground of all existence, and it is in our DNA (for we are all made of stars), to be connected to a universal consciousness. But if you don't want to get into the theory, it's easy to ignore all that and get into the music! And, together with Ignition, it almost works as an overture for the album, pulling together what you will hear over the remainder. It's no wonder it was released as the lead single. It's a stellar track from a stellar album with a literally stellar concept. Heck, even the cover art seems to fit the concept.

I do have to admit, though, that the press kit makes no mention that I can find of there actually being a concept, let alone what it is. But it's hard not to take Remnants of Obvlivion (the title track, which follows hot on the heels of Patterns of Spiralling Reality, and the album as a whole) as being reflective of Carl Sagan's famous quote that "we are made of starstuff", in title, in cover art, and in the titles of the rest of the tracks on the album. Or, I'm just pulling it all out of thin air. But within the highs and lows of the music, and the dynamics of heavy and melodic passages, there's the sense of creation from destruction, and life from chaos - patterns of spiralling reality, and a reality of spiralling patterns. Between these two tracks, we get to hear the duality that The Advent Equation seems to so painstakingly set out to show us. A delicate balance of highs and lows, darkness and light, and the classic beauty and the beast model of melodic death metal.

Speaking of melodic death metal, the first harsh vocals of the album make their appearance on the title track. I do wonder if some fans of extreme metal will find the harsh vocals too sparsely utilised, but for me they are just right. When used in smaller amounts, they have far greater impact when they occur, and they are very tastefully done. They are also well enunciated (similar to Mikael Åkerfeldt) so that you can still understand what is being sung. The title track is a bit of a monster, and if it's not already by the time this review is published, I would expect it to be released as a single at some. It's followed quickly by Facing the Absolute, continuing the one constant cycle of death and rebirth that the lyrics remind us that we face in the absolute. In philosophical terms, the absolute is the sum of all being, actual and potential. But in astrophysical terms the album concept plays with, we are all part of that sum, and like all 'starstuff', all actual and potential.

This is made more overt in the lyrics for the ballad, An Eternal Moment. My favourite lines in this song are "In fire again, we'll become, Regardless what we were before, So we find that to transcend is to ignite". The song begins its own transcendence at this point and, yes, ignites. I'm generally not a fan of prog metal ballads, and often find them quite unlistenable - but this is not only not my least favourite track on the album, it's an absolute banger. It takes a while to get going, but the slow-burn is worth it for the fiery climax. The wooden spoon in my affections actually goes to Balance Through Extinction, which (while still a good song), doesn't really seem necessary to me. It doesn't add a lot, if anything, to the overall concept of the album, and as much as I don't like to skip songs, I often consider doing so with Balance. That I've not skipped it so far in all my many listenings of the album says a lot for the song, but I do wonder if the album might flow more fluidly without it.

And so we come to the epic of the album, split over two parts. The Creation Part I: Hypnos, and Part II: Thanatos, is simply stunning. Part I is the only track where I could really say The Advent Equation sound like another band, as they put on their best Opeth impression. But damnit, it's absolutely beautiful and I can't fault it. Actually, yes I can - it's too short! The song is only just getting going, and I'm loving it, and suddenly we're in Part II. The only reason I can see for the abbreviated feel of Part I is for timing purposes for a future vinyl release, as the album can be split fairly easily into two more or less equal halves that would equate to sides of an LP. If that's the case, though, I wish they could have done without the somewhat redundant and uninspiring Balance Through Extinction, in order to give The Creation Part I more room.

But ignore my sour grapes, as I'm sure you will as soon as The Creation Part II hits - with force. I guess this is the Deliverance to Part I's Damnation. And it's firetrucking fantastic! What a way to end the album! If we take away my personal reservations about Balance Through Extinction (which I'm not arrogant enough to assume will be shared by many), there's very little I could ask more of from Remnants of Oblivion. Every instrument is played with a virtuosity that is not just technical but organic. Too often the complexities of prog metal are too mechanical and not organic enough for me to enjoy them. Restraint is also something often sorely lacking in prog metal, with far too much wanking, and not enough nuance. No such worries for The Advent Equation, where every drum fill, every keyboard frill, every guitar and bass riff feel natural and needed. Basically, this is a top notch album, and I can't wait to hear more. Maybe not eight years this time, boys?

Despite being labeled as a progressive death metal act and having origins as an Opeth tribute band, The Advent Equation has a rather innovative approach to the genre. Sure, the contrast between heavy and light sections is here in spades, and there are even a handful of acoustic portions, but Limitless Life Reflections does reach far beyond the melancholy and dynamics of classic Opeth material. Modern touches in the form of atmospheric keyboard tones, sleek production technique, and occasional djent-y riffs give the album a fresh coat of polish, and while fans of 'classic' extreme progressive metal should have no problem approaching this album, it offers a myriad of new ideas to keep things interesting. Influences from jazz, traditional progressive metal, and Meshuggah-inspired polyrhythms spice up the expected blend of gloomy melodic death metal and progressive rock, and this variation is much appreciated.

Fortunately, The Advent Equation also knows how to write some exceptional material, and tracks like "Glimpse of What May Be" and "Hopeless" are superb displays of technical wizardry and compositional finesse. Fans of metal that is simultaneously catchy, progressive, and devastatingly heavy should find a lot to enjoy from Limitless Life Reflections. This is one of the strongest debuts I've heard in 2012, and I highly recommend all extreme progressive metal listeners to give it a purchase.